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- Be a good example!
If you want your child to eat right and exercise, you can't sit on the
couch eating potato chips!
- Take your child grocery
shopping! Some grocery stores even offer in-house nutrition
tours.
- If you want to know,
ask! When you ask your child about their day at school, be sure to
ask about lunch! Try to find out details - like, did they eat
their lunch or trade their sandwich for someone else's cookies?
Did they have enough to eat?
- Stand up for health!
Tell the board of education in your town that you want your child to
have healthy food options at school, and more time for physical
education class instead of study hall!
- Make them go outside
and play! Children naturally like to play, and research has
shown that most children can get adequate exercise from playing
outside! Tag away!
- Enroll your child in
recreational fitness activities! Soccer, dance, rollerskating,
basketball, swimming, snowboarding, ice skating, skateboarding, karate,
nature hiking, and yoga are just a few programs that are organized by
schools and town recreation departments. If you're low on cash, taking
your child on a walk at a local nature trail is a low-cost and fun
fitness option. -
Find good role models! Learning about Olympians and other
competitive athletes like Lance Armstrong, Sasha Cohen, Peekaboo Street
and Michael Phelps may help your child become interested in a physical
activity. -
For older children, teach them about their bodies! Help
your children understand the risks of being overweight and the risks of
not exercising, just as you would help them understand what smoking does
to their lungs or how drugs affect their brain.
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